Canarsie

Canarsie is a neighborhood in southeastern Brooklyn, New York City. Canarsie means "fort" in Lenape, and it was a fishing village until pollution contaminated the oysters during the 1800s. During the 1920s, southern Italian immigrants and Jews settled in the area, but white flight during the 1960s and 1970s and Caribbean immigration led to Canarsie becoming a predominantly African-American neighborhood. In 2010, Canarsie had a population of 83,693 people, with 81% being African-American, 8.3% Hispanic, 5.9% white, 2.6% Asian, 1.5% multiracial, .4% other races, .2% Native American, and 0% Pacific islander (8 people).